Cong Terms VBSA Very Bad Shiksha Act, Asks Naidu to Have Courage to Oppose It
The bill is being currently scrutinised by a parliamentary committee and will be taken up for discussion and passage during the upcoming Monsoon session of Parliament beginning July 20
By : PTI
Update: 2026-07-10 09:34 GMT
New Delhi: The Congress on Friday termed the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill proposing an overhaul of the higher education framework a "Very Bad Shiksha Act" violative of the federal structure of the Constitution and a threat to the autonomy of universities.
The bill is being currently scrutinised by a parliamentary committee and will be taken up for discussion and passage during the upcoming Monsoon session of Parliament beginning July 20.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh urged NDA-ruled states, particularly Andhra Pradesh, to have the courage of conviction to submit dissent notes and oppose the bill when it is taken up in Parliament.
"The VBSA will actually be a Very Bad Shiksha Act for the following reasons -- Constitutional Overreach, Absence of Grants Council, Impact on Institutions of National Importance and Dilution of UGC's Consultative Requirements," he said in a post on X.
Urging Andhra Pradesh chief minister to oppose the bill, Ramesh said "Chandrababu Naidu garu" was opposed to the delimitation bills but was forced to support them.
Now the picture is different, the Congress leader said. "The TDP is no longer essential for the survival of Mr. Modi since it has been displaced in the 2nd position in the NDA by the three-year old, obscure, and fishy Nationalist Citizens Party of India. So, if he believes that the VBSA is not in the interests of states, he must stand up boldly and be counted," Ramesh asserted.
He said the bill, according to its Statement of Objects and Reasons, was introduced for passing in Parliament under Entry 66 of Union List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. However, Entry 66 of Union List gives limited and specific legislative powers to Parliament that is only for "Co- ordination and determination of standards in institutions for higher education or research and scientific and technical institutions".
The VBSA Bill gives the VBSA powers far beyond this scope, and specifically encroaches on State Government powers, Ramesh claimed.
Entry 44 of List I-Union List expressly prohibits the Parliament for law-making on matters of Incorporation, Regulation and Winding up of Universities, and Entry 32 of List II-State List expressly gives this law-making power to State Legislatures, the Congress leader noted
"The Bill is therefore violative of the federal structure of the Constitution," he claimed. Referring to the absence of a Grants Council, Ramesh said the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP) expressly envisioned a Higher Education Council of India with four verticals.
"The current bill envisions only three Councils, with the exception of a council for grant-giving. Effectively, grant-giving powers will be returned from autonomous bodies (the UGC and AICTE) governed by academics to the Ministry that is run by politicians. This centralization of power is a departure from current practice, a violation of the NEP, and a threat to the autonomy of our universities," he said.
Regarding Impact on Institutions of National Importance, he said, the VBSA includes the INIs-- Institutes of National Importance (IITs, IIMs, NITs, IIITs, and IISERs) --which have historically had autonomy.
For instance, according to the IIT Act 1961, IITs are empowered to create their own academic programmes and need no further approvals for the grant of the same, he observed.
"However, clause 49 of the draft Bill grants the Bill an overriding effect over all other laws currently in force. Although it says that the autonomy of INIs cannot be compromised, it is not clear on the details. Therefore, with this bill, IITs and other INIs may also be expected to fall under the Commission's regulatory powers. This has never been the case before and may compromise their academic and institutional autonomy," Ramesh claimed.
Alleging the dilution of UGC's Consultative Requirements, the Congress leader said under the existing UGC Act, the UGC has the mandate to perform all its functions of determination and maintenance of standards in universities, specify regulations, and even to conduct inspection in consultation with the Universities.
"The proposed Bill, in contrast, gives sole discretionary powers to the Councils to determine standards, conduct inspection, and exercise/perform other unlimited and unspecified powers and functions. The regulator is now statutorily siloed off from the institutions," he said.